The Groningen Archives are no longer a dusty place where historians conduct research. A major renovation must prepare the building for the future and a varied audience. What will change and what will you notice?
In 1997, the Groninger Archives moved to Cascadeplein in Groningen, near the station. The building is ready for change, from May the reception hall and study room will be renovated. The depots, where 32 kilometers of archive documents are kept, remain unaffected.
Cost? About 5.9 million euros.
From historians to primary school students
Whoever enters the reading room now encounters a handful of gray historians, a number of students and unoccupied tables. That used to be different, when the study room was full of people.
The current format no longer suffices, the use of the archives is changing. “The visitors to the archive are no longer just family researchers or historians, it has become much broader,” explains director Eddy de Jonge. Many schoolchildren and students come to the archives, but also, for example, people who view construction files for a renovation. More people come into contact with the archive online, 5 percent of all documents have been digitized. “They come to us to view the original documents.”
Education and organizing events have become more important. The archive now welcomes classes and opens the doors for events. These activities take place in the reception hall. And that is difficult, because the hall is not designed for this. Many people then walk to the study room behind the hall.
De Jonge speaks enthusiastically about the plans. There will be a real education square, a place where the school classes are received and the events take place. The reading room changes from a room with tables to a multifunctional place with space where you can talk or work in silence.
The renovation
The building will be tackled in various phases from May, and the renovation is expected to be completed in the spring of 2024. No extra money is needed for the implementation of the plan, this is paid for by the archives themselves.
And the archive visitors? They have to make do with an hour less archive, the doors close at four instead of five. Noise nuisance remains minimal and is limited to the early hours. At the end of this year, the reading room will move to a neighboring building, Cascadeplein 10.
As it turns out, the Groningen Archives are not only about the past, but also about the future.